“Circumstance does not make the man; it reveals him to himself.”

A man can only rise, conquer, and achieve by lifting up his thoughts.

Only he whose thoughts are controlled and purified, makes the winds and the storms of the soul obey him.

A person is limited only by the thoughts that he chooses.

He that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

The outer world of circumstance shapes itself to the inner world of thought.

The truly self-possessed, however, are free from the whims of fate and chance. Calmly, they affect their will, and with strength of character and purity of intention, they attract to their person solely positive outcomes.

To begin to think with purpose, is to enter the ranks of those strong ones who only recognize failure as one of the pathways to attainment.

Cherish the music that stirs in your heart, the beauty that forms in your mind, the loveliness that drapes your purest thoughts.

Mind is the master weaver, both of the inner garment of character and the outer garment of circumstance.

The “divinity that shapes our ends” is in ourselves.

Cherish your visions; cherish your ideals; cherish the music that stirs in your heart, the beauty that forms in your mind, the loveliness that drapes your purest thoughts, for out of them will grow all delightful.

Suffering is always the effect of wrong thought in some direction.

All evil is corrective and remedial and is therefore not permanent.

When a man makes his thoughts pure, he no longer desires impure food.

The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater is his success, his influence, his power for good. The calmness of mind is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom.

As the reaper of his own harvest, man learns both of suffering and bliss

Character – not wealth, power, or position – is the supreme word.

In a militia, the character of the laborer, artificer, or tradesman, predominates over that of the soldier: in a standing army, that of the soldier predominates over every other character.

The most important thing for a young man is to establish a credit, a reputation, character.

For me acting, comes straight from the heart. In that sense I don’t act at all. I think that to feel the character’s pain I have to be myself. Somewhere audiences see that.

Knowledge is essential to conquest; only according to our ignorance are we helpless. Thought creates character. Character can dominate conditions. Will creates circumstances and environment.

I am an actor, and I would like to reinvent myself through every character that I portray.

A family is a place where principles are hammered and honed on the anvil of everyday living.

You don’t get to be a jerk just because you’re skilled.